eTheRNA immunotherapies has announced the signing of a research agreement with Merck. The partnership will investigate the application of eTheRNA’s proprietary mRNA design and LNP-delivery platforms to disease areas selected by Merck.
The ongoing pandemic has underlined the capability for mRNA vaccines as a therapeutic modality, and the companies say there is potential for using these therapeutics in an expanded range of diseases.
With this collaboration, they will assess the feasibility of using eTheRNA’s mRNA and LNP technologies to develop vaccination approaches in models of disease. If successful, mRNAs encoding antigens nominated by Merck and directly relevant for human diseases will be designed and evaluated preclinically.
Steven Powell, eTheRNA CEO said “We are extremely pleased to sign this partnership agreement with Merck, a leading German science and technology company. As two companies committed to innovation and creating patient focused solutions, we are excited about the many advantages such a partnership can offer to improve patient care and address a significant market need.”